Pasta can be a healthy option. Just pair it with some great health-boosting ingredients

This is fuss-free, healthy cooking at its finest.

This is an edited extract from The Food for Life Cookbook by Tim Spector (Penguin Random House, $59.99.) Photography: Issy Croker

Pasta is a fantastic vehicle for flavour and texture, and this dish is a great example of how combining foods can help your blood sugar response. There’s plenty of healthy fats from the walnuts in the delicious and satisfying sauce, as well as fibre from the broccoli – both of which slow your blood sugar response. This is fuss-free, healthy cooking at its finest.

Try too my eggplant pasta bake.

Broccoli and walnuts are a tasty combination.

Tim Spector is an advocate for healthy eating.

Broccoli and walnut orecchiette

Ingredients

• 100g orecchiette pasta
• 150g cherry tomatoes
• 80g walnuts
• 2 tablespoons Boosting Bouillon, optional, see below
• 1 large head of broccoli (about 350g), cut into small florets
• Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Bring a large saucepan of salted boiling water to the boil and cook the pasta for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, put the tomatoes, walnuts and Boosting Bouillon into a food processor with a pinch of salt and pepper and blitz until you have a chunky paste.
2. After the pasta has been cooking for 10 minutes, add the broccoli florets to the pan and cook for 2 minutes longer.
3. Drain, reserving about 100ml of the cooking water. Tip the walnut and tomato paste into the saucepan with almost all the reserved pasta water; mix and heat through for about 1 minute.
4. Return the pasta and broccoli to the pan and toss to combine everything. Add a splash more water if needed. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Serves 2

Boosting Bouillon

This is a fantastic alternative to using stock cubes, imparting a deep umami flavour. The chilli flakes add a gentle warmth to the overall taste, but you can exclude them if you wish. Use 2-3 tablespoons to replace 1 stock cube. You can feel good knowing that, each time you use it, you’re boosting your plant score and fibre intake.

50g nutritional yeast

70g sunflower seeds

2 tablespoons sea salt


Place all ingredients in a blender and blitz until you have a fine powder. Store in an airtight jar for up to 4 weeks.

Makes 150g